Headphones sound distant

[laserfart]

Recently received a used pair of Shure 750DJs.
Trying it with my laptop, phone, and ipod, the volume is high enough and it sounds detailed but for some reason it just doesn't sound very engaging. Like comparing it to my $20 Tascam Th-02, those sound a lot more intimate and more pleasant to listen to. Could my headphones or cable be defective? Or could it be the padding and fit they have on my ears? Would it sound a lot better with an amp? 

 

[Cotnijoe]

Im not 100% sure since I've never tried these particular headphones before. But you could try to EQ the headphones and bring out the mids of them a bit. That might give you a bit more intimacy.
 
Just a thought

 

[money4me247]

if you determined it's not a problem w/ audio drivers, cable connections, source files... then I would give it 2 weeks for you to get used to the new sound (slash burn-in, i don't believe in burn-in though). sometimes, when your brain is customized to a certain sound, switching to something new makes you feel like you're losing something. After 2 weeks, if you still don't like em, just return em b/c that's really how they sound. Fiddling w/ amps/dacs will only change the sound at most 25%, but there is no use trying to get a pair of headphones to sound like something it naturally isn't.
 
For "intimate," I am not sure exactly what you mean. If you mean things just sound closer, it might be that your new headphones has a larger sound stage, so things that are farther away sound farther away. Or it could be the bass is warmer on one pair vs the other. Hard to say as I also never heard the pair of headphones you have.
 
good luck & i hope you find what you are looking for

 

[MalVeauX]

  Recently received a used pair of Shure 750DJs.
Trying it with my laptop, phone, and ipod, the volume is high enough and it sounds detailed but for some reason it just doesn't sound very engaging. Like comparing it to my $20 Tascam Th-02, those sound a lot more intimate and more pleasant to listen to. Could my headphones or cable be defective? Or could it be the padding and fit they have on my ears? Would it sound a lot better with an amp? 

 
Heya,
 
Recessed mids. EQ the mids ranges and the surrounding upper bass and lower treble, up a bit. Try 250hz to 1khz range, and up them by 2~3db a piece, until it sounds right to you.
 
Very best,